Flip chip mounting method and method for connecting substrates

ABSTRACT

A flip chip mounting method which is applicable to the flip chip mounting of a next-generation LSI and high in productivity and reliability as well as a method for connecting substrates are provided. A circuit board  10  having a plurality of connecting terminals  11  and a semiconductor chip  20  having a plurality of electrode terminals  21  are disposed in mutually facing relation and a resin  13  containing conductive particles  12  and a gas bubble generating agent is supplied into the space therebetween. In this state, the resin  13  is heated to generate gas bubbles  30  from the gas bubble generating agent contained in the resin  13 . The resin  13  is pushed toward the outside of the generated gas bubbles  30  by the growth thereof. The resin  13  pushed to the outside is self-assembled in the form of columns between the respective terminals of the circuit board  10  and the semiconductor chip  20 . In this state, by pressing the semiconductor chip  20  against the circuit board  10 , the conductive particles  12  contained in the resin  13  self-assembled between the facing terminals are brought into contact with each other to provide electrical connection between the terminals.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a flip chip mounting method formounting a semiconductor chip on a circuit board and to a method forconnecting substrates each formed with a plurality of electrodes.

BACKGROUND ART

In recent years, as semiconductor integrated circuits (LSIs) used inelectronic equipment have become higher in density and degree ofintegration, the electrode terminals of LSI chips have rapidly becomehigher in pin count and narrower in pitch. To mount such an LSI chip ona circuit board, flip chip mounting has been used widely for a reductionin wiring delay. In the flip chip mounting, it is typical to form solderbumps on the electrode terminals of an LSI chip and simultaneously bondthe electrode terminals to connecting terminals formed on a circuitboard via the solder bumps.

To mount a next-generation LSI having electrode terminals the number ofwhich is over 5,000, it is needed to form bumps corresponding to anarrower pitch of not more than 100 μm. However, with a currentsolder-bump forming technology, it is difficult to respond to the need.In addition, it is needed to form a large number of bumps correspondingto the number of electrode terminals. Therefore, to reduce cost, it isalso required to achieve high productivity by reducing a mounting tacttime per chip.

Likewise, due to an increased number of electrode terminals, thesemiconductor integrated circuit has shifted from the use of peripheralelectrode terminals to that of area array electrode terminals. Under thehigher-density and higher-integration requirements, it is expected thatthe scale of a semiconductor process advances from 90 nm to 65 nm and 45nm. As a result, the miniaturization of wiring further proceeds and awire-to-wire capacitance increases so that problems associated with ahigher speed and a power consumption loss have become serious and demandfor a low-dielectric-constant (low-k) insulating film between wiringlayers has further grown. Such a low-k insulating film can beimplemented by porosifying an insulating layer material so that themechanical strength thereof is low, presenting an obstacle to areduction in the thickness of a semiconductor. Moreover, when area arrayelectrode terminals are constructed as described above, there is aproblem in the strength of a low-k porous film. Consequently, it hasbecome difficult to form bumps on the area array electrodes and performflip chip mounting itself. As a result, there has been demand for alow-load flip chip mounting method suitable for a higher-density thinsemiconductor compatible with the future advancement of a semiconductorprocess.

As conventional bump forming techniques, a plating method, a screenprinting method, and the like have been developed. The plating method issuitable for a narrow pitch, but has a problem in productivity becauseof complicated process steps. The screen printing method is excellent inproductivity, but is not suitable for a narrow pitch because of the useof a mask.

In such a situation, several techniques which selectively form solderbumps on the electrodes of an LSI chip and a circuit board have beendeveloped recently. These techniques are not only suitable for theformation of micro-bumps but also capable of simultaneously forming thebumps so that they are also excellent in productivity and draw attentionas techniques applicable to the mounting of a next-generation LSI on acircuit board.

For example, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, PatentDocument 2, or the like solidly coats a solder paste composed of amixture of a solder powder and a flux on a substrate having electrodesformed on the surface thereof, melts the solder powder by heating thesubstrate, and selectively forms solder bumps on the electrodes havinghigh wettability.

The technique disclosed in Patent Document 3 solidly coats a paste-likecomposition (deposition-type solder using a chemical reaction)containing an organic acid lead salt and metallic tin as main componentson a substrate on which electrodes are formed, causes a substitutionreaction between Pb and Sn by heating the substrate, and selectivelydeposits a Pb/Sn alloy on the electrodes of the substrate.

However, each of the techniques disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3shown above supplies a paste-like composition onto the substrate bycoating, local variations in thickness and concentration occur.Accordingly, the amount of a deposited solder differs from one electrodeto another and bumps having uniform heights cannot be obtained. Inaddition, since each of the methods supplies the paste-like compositionby coating onto the circuit board having projections and depressionsformed in the surface thereof, a sufficient amount of the solder cannotbe supplied onto the electrodes forming projecting portions so that itis difficult to obtain bumps of desired heights, which is necessary inflip chip mounting.

In flip chip mounting using a conventional bump forming technique, aftera semiconductor chip is mounted on a circuit board on which bumps areformed, the step of injecting a resin termed an underfill into the spacebetween the semiconductor chip and the circuit board is further neededto fix the semiconductor chip to the circuit board.

As a method for simultaneously performing the provision of electricalconnection between the facing electrode terminals of the semiconductorchip and the circuit board and the fixation of the semiconductor chip tothe circuit board, a flip chip mounting technique (see, e.g., PatentDocument 4) using an anisotropic conductive material has been developed.The technique supplies a thermosetting resin containing conductiveparticles into the space between the circuit board and the semiconductorchip and heats the thermosetting resin, while simultaneously pressingthe semiconductor chip, thereby simultaneously implementing theelectrical connection between the respective electrode terminals of thesemiconductor chip and the circuit board and the fixation of thesemiconductor chip to the circuit board.

Patent Document 1: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-94179

Patent Document 2: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. HEI6-125169Patent Document 3: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. HEI1-157796

Patent Document 4: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-332055Patent Document 5: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-26070

Patent Document 6: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. HEI11-186334

Patent Document 7: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-260131Non-Patent Document 1: Masahito Yasuda et al., “Self-Organized JoiningAssembly Process by Electrically Conductive Adhesive Using Low MeltingPoint Filler” 10th Symposium on “Microjoining and Assembly Technology inElectronics, pp. 183 to 188, 2004) DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problemsto be Solved by the Invention

It can be said that flip chip mounting using an anisotropic conductivematerial is excellent in productivity in terms of simultaneouslyimplementing electrical connection between the respective electrodeterminals of a semiconductor chip and a circuit board and fixation ofthe semiconductor chip to the circuit board. However, as shown below,there are problems to be solved.

The anisotropic conductive material mentioned above has the conductiveparticles uniformly dispersed in the resin. By pressing thesemiconductor chip against the circuit hoard, the dispersed conductiveparticles are brought into physical contact with the respectiveelectrode terminals of the semiconductor chip and the circuit board,thereby allowing electrical connection between the facing electrodeterminals. On the other hand, the resin of the anisotropic conductivematerial ensures insulation properties between the adjacent electrodeterminals.

However, because the conductive particles are uniformly dispersed in theresin, the conductive particles contributing to conduction between thefacing electrode terminals are only among all the conductive particles.As a result, it is difficult to obtain a stable conductive state,resulting in a problem that sufficient reliability cannot be providedfor electrical connection. Moreover, even though the adjacent electrodeterminals are insulated from each other, there is a possibility thatsufficient insulation properties cannot be ensured, since the conductiveparticles not contributing to the conduction between the facingelectrode terminals are dispersed in the resin.

Thus, to apply the flip chip mounting using the anisotropic conductivematerial to a next-generation LSI chip having connecting terminals thenumber of which is over 5,000, problems associated with reliabilityremain to be solved.

The present invention has been achieved in view of the foregoing and anobject of the present invention is to provide a flip chip mountingmethod which is applicable to the flip chip mounting of anext-generation LSI and high in productivity and reliability as well asa method for connecting substrates having the same basic process stepsas the flip chip mounting method.

Means for Solving the Problems

A flip chip mounting method of the present invention is a flip chipmounting method for disposing a semiconductor chip having a plurality ofelectrode terminals in facing relation to a circuit board having aplurality of connecting terminals and electrically connecting theconnecting terminals of the circuit board to the electrode terminals ofthe semiconductor chip, the flip chip mounting method comprising: afirst step of supplying a resin containing conductive particles and agas bubble generating agent into a space between the circuit board andthe semiconductor chip; a second step of heating the resin to generategas bubbles from the gas bubble generating agent contained in the resin;a third step of pressing the semiconductor chip against the circuitboard; and a fourth step of curing the resin, wherein, in the secondstep, the resin is pushed toward the outside of the gas bubblesgenerated from the gas bubble generating agent by growth of the gasbubbles and self-assembled between the connecting terminals of thecircuit board and the electrode terminals of the semiconductor chip, inthe third step, the conductive particles contained in the resinself-assembled between the terminals come in contact with each other toprovide electrical connection between the terminals, and in the fourthstep, the resin between the terminals is cured to fix the semiconductorchip to the circuit board.

Preferably, the gas bubble generating agent is composed of a materialwhich boils when the resin is heated. The gas bubble generating agentmay be composed of two or more materials having different boilingtemperatures. The gas bubble generating agent may also be composed of amaterial which is thermally decomposed to generate a gas when the resinis heated. For example, the gas bubble generating agent is composed of acompound containing water of crystallization and decomposed to generatewater vapor when the resin is heated.

In a preferred embodiment, the second step is performed while the spacebetween the circuit board and the semiconductor chip is varied.

In a preferred embodiment, the first step is performed by supplying theresin containing the conductive particles and the gas bubble generatingagent onto the circuit board and then disposing the semiconductor chipon a surface of the resin.

In a preferred embodiment, the fourth step is performed by heating theresin to thermally cure the resin. The flip chip mounting method mayalso further comprise, after the fourth step, the step of: supplying anunderfill material into the space between the circuit board and thesemiconductor chip and then curing the underfill material.

In a preferred embodiment, the semiconductor chip having the pluralityof electrode terminals has a structure in which a semiconductor barechip is mounted on an interposer having the plurality of electrodeterminals.

A method for connecting substrates of the present invention is a methodfor connecting substrates by disposing a second substrate having aplurality of electrodes in facing relation to a first substrate having aplurality of electrodes and providing electrical connection between theelectrodes of the first substrate and the electrodes of the secondsubstrate, the method comprising: a first step of supplying a resincontaining conductive particles and a gas bubble generating agent into aspace between the first substrate and the second substrate; a secondstep of heating the resin to generate gas bubbles from the gas bubblegenerating agent contained in the resin; a third step of pressing thesecond substrate against the first substrate; and a fourth step ofcuring the resin, wherein in the second step, the resin is pushed towardthe outside of the gas bubbles generated from the gas bubble generatingagent by growth of the gas bubbles and self-assembled between theelectrodes of the first substrate and the electrodes of the secondsubstrate, in the third step, the conductive particles contained in theresin self-assembled between the electrodes come in contact with eachother to provide electrical connection between the electrodes, and inthe fourth step, the resin self-assembled between the electrodes iscured to fix the first substrate to the second substrate.

Preferably, the gas bubble generating agent is composed of a materialwhich boils when the resin is heated.

In a preferred embodiment, the second step is performed while varyingthe space between the first substrate and the second substrate.

In a preferred embodiment, the first step is performed by supplying theresin containing the conductive particles and the gas bubble generatingagent onto the first substrate and then disposing the second substrateon a surface of the resin.

In a preferred embodiment, the flip chip mounting method furthercomprises, after the fourth step, the step of: supplying an underfillmaterial into the space between the first substrate and the secondsubstrate and then curing the underfill material.

A flip chip mounting method of the present invention is a flip chipmounting body comprising a circuit board having a plurality ofconnecting terminals and a semiconductor chip having a plurality ofelectrode terminals and disposed in facing relation to the circuit boardsuch that the connecting terminals of the circuit board are electricallyconnected to the electrode terminals of the semiconductor chip, whereinthe connecting terminals are electrically connected to the electrodeterminals by supplying a resin containing conductive particles and a gasbubble generating agent into a space between the circuit board and thesemiconductor chip, causing the resin to be self-assembled between theconnecting terminals and the electrode terminals, and bringing theconductive particles in the self-assembled resin into contact with eachother.

In a preferred embodiment, the flip chip mounting body is fixed with anunderfill material supplied into the space between the circuit board andthe semiconductor chip.

A flip chip mounting apparatus of the present invention is a flip chipmounting apparatus for flip chip mounting a semiconductor chip on acircuit board, the flip chip mounting apparatus comprising: holdingmeans for holding the semiconductor chip and the circuit board inmutually facing relation with a given space provided therebetween;supplying means for supplying a resin containing conductive particlesand a gas bubble generating agent into the space between thesemiconductor chip and the circuit board; heating means for heating theresin, and pressing means for pressing the semiconductor chip againstthe circuit board, wherein the heating means has first heating means forcontrolling a temperature to a value at which gas bubbles are from thegas bubble generating agent contained in the resin and second heatingmeans for controlling the temperature to a value at which the resin isthermally cured.

In a preferred embodiment, the resin heated with the first heating meansis pushed toward the outside of the gas bubbles generated from the gasbubble generating agent by growth of the gas bubbles and self-assembledbetween connecting terminals of the circuit board and electrodeterminals of the semiconductor chip, the semiconductor chip is pressedagainst the circuit board with the pressing means to bring theconductive particles contained in the resin self-assembled between theterminals into contact with each other and provide electrical connectionbetween the terminals, and the resin is heated with the second heatingmeans to fix the semiconductor chip to the circuit board in a state inwhich the conductive particles contained in the resin are in contactwith each other.

EFFECT OF THE INVENTION

In the flip chip mounting method according to the present invention, byheating the resin containing the conductive particles and the gas bubblegenerating agent which is supplied into the space between the circuitboard and the semiconductor chip, the gas bubbles are generated from thegas bubble generating agent and the resin is pushed toward the outsideof the gas bubbles by the growth thereof and allowed to beself-assembled between the connecting terminals of the circuit board andthe electrode terminals of the semiconductor chip. Then, by pressing thesemiconductor chip against the circuit board, the conductive particlescontained in the resin self-assembled between the facing terminals arebrought into contact with each other to allow electrical connectionbetween the terminals. This allows the conductive particles dispersed inthe resin to be efficiently self-assembled between the terminals andcontribute to conduction between the terminals. As a result, a stableconductive state is obtained and electrical connection with highreliability can be achieved.

Likewise, in the method for connecting substrates according to thepresent invention also, by heating the resin containing the conductiveparticles and the gas bubble generating agent which is supplied into thespace between the facing substrates, the gas bubbles are generated fromthe gas bubble generating agent and the resin is pushed toward theoutside of the gas bubbles by the growth thereof and allowed to beself-assembled between the respective electrodes of the facingsubstrates. By pressing the substrates against each other, theconductive particles contained in the resin self-assembled between theelectrodes are brought into contact with each other to allow electricalconnection between the electrodes. This allows the conductive particlesdispersed in the resin to be efficiently self-assembled between theelectrodes and contribute to conduction between the electrodes. As aresult, a stable conductive state is obtained and substrate-to-substrateconnection with high reliability can be achieved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1( a) to 1(d) are step-by-step cross-sectional views showing aflip chip mounting method in an embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 2( a) to 2(c) are step-by-step cross-sectional views showing theflip chip mounting method in the embodiment;

FIG. 3( a) is view showing a temperature profile in heating a resin inthe present invention and FIG. 3( b) is a view showing a pressureprofile when a semiconductor chip is pressed against a circuit board;

FIGS. 4( a) and 4(b) are views for illustrating the mechanism ofself-assembly of a resin in the present invention;

FIG. 5( a) to 5(c) are step-by-step cross-sectional views illustrating astep of performing heating while varying a gap between the circuit boardand the semiconductor chip in the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a view for illustrating the self-assembly of a resincontaining two or more gas bubble generating agents in the presentinvention;

FIG. 7 is a view showing the materials of a gas bubble generating agentin the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a view showing the materials of a gas bubble generating agentpowder which is thermally decomposed in the present invention; and

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a structure of a flip-chip mountingapparatus in the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF NUMERALS

-   -   10 Circuit Board    -   11 Connecting Terminal    -   12 Conductive Particle    -   13 Resin    -   20 Underfill Material    -   21 Semiconductor Chip    -   30, 30 a, 30 b Gas bubbles    -   40 Flip Chip Mounting Apparatus    -   41 Holding Means    -   42 Supplying Means    -   43 Heating Means    -   44 First Heating Means    -   45 Second Heating Means    -   46 Pressing Means

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Referring to the drawings, the embodiments of the present invention willbe described herein below. For easier illustration, components havingsubstantially the same functions are designated by the same referencenumerals in the drawings shown below. The present invention is notlimited to the following embodiments.

FIGS. 1( a) to 1(d) and FIGS. 2( a) to 2(c) are step-by-stepcross-sectional views showing the basic steps of a flip chip mountingmethod in an embodiment of the present invention.

First, as shown in FIG. 1( a), a resin (e.g., an epoxy resin or thelike) 13 containing conductive particles (e.g., Cu or the like) 12 and agas bubble generating agent (e.g., isopropyl alcohol or the like) issupplied onto a circuit board 10 having a plurality of connectingterminals 11. Then, as shown in FIG. 1( b), a semiconductor chip 20having a plurality of electrode terminals 21 is disposed on the surfaceof the resin 13 to face the circuit board 10. At this time, theelectrode terminals 21 of the semiconductor chip 20 are aligned withrespect to the connecting terminals 11 of the circuit board 10.

The steps shown herein may also be such that the circuit board 10 andthe semiconductor chip 20 are preliminarily disposed to face each otherwith a given space (e.g., 10 to 80 μm) interposed therebetween and thenthe resin 13 containing the conductive particles 12 and the gas bubblegenerating agent is supplied into the space.

In this state, when the resin 13 is heated to a predeterminedtemperature (e.g., 100 to 150° C.), gas bubbles 30 are generated fromthe gas bubble generating agent contained in the resin 13, as shown inFIG. 1( c). Then, as shown in FIG. 1( d), the generated gas bubbles 30gradually grow so that the resin 13 is pushed by the grown gas bubbles30 toward the outside thereof.

As shown in FIG. 2( a), the resin 13 pushed to the outside isself-assembled in the form of columns (e.g., generally cylindricalcolumns) between the connecting terminals 11 of the circuit board 10 andthe electrode terminals 21 of the semiconductor chip 20. At this time,most of the resin 13 which is not self-assembled between the terminalsis pushed from the space between the circuit board 10 and thesemiconductor chip 20 toward the outside under the pressure of the growngas bubbles 30.

Then, in this state, the semiconductor chip 20 is pressed against thecircuit board 10 in the direction indicated by the arrows, as shown inFIG. 2( b). The magnitude of the pressure is set to, e.g., about 20 k to200 kPa. By the pressing, the conductive particles 12 contained in theresin 13 self-assembled between the facing terminals are brought intocontact with each other to provide electrical connection between theterminals. At this time, the electrical connection between the terminalsis intended to be achieved with at least one or more conductiveparticles 12 interposed between the terminals. In pressing, theconductive particles 12 contained in the resin 13 are prevented fromflowing out of the resin 13 by the action of a stress resulting from theviscosity of the resin 13.

In this state, the resin 13 self-assembled between the facing terminalsis cured to fix the semiconductor chip 20 to the circuit board 10, asshown in FIG. 2( c). Although the resin 13 that has spread over theentire surfaces of the terminals is sufficient to fix the semiconductorchip 20 to the circuit board 10, an underfill material 14 may also beinjected as necessary into the space between the semiconductor chip 20and the circuit board 10 and then cured to enhance the fixation of thesemiconductor chip 20 to the circuit board 10. It is also possible tosupply the underfill material 14 before pressing the semiconductor chip20 against the circuit board 10.

In accordance with the present invention, by heating the resin 13containing the conductive particles 12 and the gas bubble generatingagent supplied into the space between the circuit board 10 and thesemiconductor chip 20, the gas bubbles are generated from the gas bubblegenerating agent and, by allowing the gas bubbles to grow and push theresin 13 toward the outside thereof, the resin 13 can be self-assembledbetween the connecting terminals 11 of the circuit board 10 and theelectrode terminals 21 of the semiconductor chip 20. By pressing thesemiconductor chip 20 against the circuit board 10, the conductiveparticles 12 contained in the resin 13 self-assembled between the facingterminals are brought into contact with each other to allow electricalconnection between the terminals. This allows the conductive particles12 dispersed in the resin 13 to be efficiently self-assembled betweenthe terminals and contribute to conduction between the terminals. As aresult, a stable conductive state is obtained and electrical connectionwith high reliability can be achieved.

The sizes of the individual components and the positional relationshipstherebetween shown in FIGS. 1( a) to 1(d) and FIGS. 2( a) to 2(c) (e.g.,the sizes of the conductive particles 12, the size of the spacingbetween the circuit board 10 and the semiconductor chip 20, and thelike) are represented for the convenience of easier illustration and donot show real sizes and the like.

FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b) are graphs showing an example of a temperatureprofile in the step of heating the resin 13 and an example of a pressureprofile in a pressing step in the flip chip mounting method describedabove.

As shown in FIG. 3( a), the resin 13 is first heated to a temperature T₁at which the gas bubbles 30 are generated from the gas bubble generatingagent contained in the resin 13. The temperature T₁ is held for a giventime to, during which the generated gas bubbles 30 grow to push theresin 13 towards the outside thereof and the resin 13 is self-assembledin the form of columns between the facing terminals. The temperature T₁is set herein to, e.g., 100 to 180° C. and the given time t₁ is set to,e.g., about 5 to 10 seconds.

Then, in the state, the semiconductor chip 20 is pressed under apressure P₁ against the circuit board 10 in the direction indicated bythe arrows for a given time t₂, as shown in FIG. 3( b). By the pressing,the conductive particles 12 contained in the resin 13 self-assembledbetween the facing terminals are brought into contact with each other toprovide electrical connection between the terminals. At this time, theresin 13 is maintained at a given heating temperature T₁. The pressureP₁ is set herein to, e.g., 70 to 200 kPa and the given time t₂ is setto, e.g., about 0 to 5 seconds.

Finally, as shown in FIG. 3( a), the resin 13 is heated to a temperatureT₃ at which the resin 13 is cured. The temperature T₃ is held for agiven time t₃ to cure the resin 13 remaining between the facingterminals and thereby fix the semiconductor chip 20 to the circuit board10. The temperature T₃ is set herein to, e.g., 150 to 250° C. and thegiven time t₃ is set to, e.g., about 10 to 20 seconds.

In the temperature profile shown in FIG. 3( a), the heating temperatureat which the gas bubbles 30 are generated from the gas bubble generatingagent is held at the fixed temperature T₁ for the period of the time t₁(or the time t₁+t₂). However, it is also possible to gradually increasethe temperature during the period of the time.

Referring to FIGS. 4( a) and 4(b), the mechanism of the self-assembly ofthe resin 13 between the terminals, which is a key point to the flipchip mounting method of the present invention, will be briefly describedherein.

FIG. 4( a) is a view showing the state of the resin 13 pushed by thegrown gas bubbles (not shown) into the space between one of theconnecting terminals 11 of the circuit board 10 and the correspondingelectrode terminal 21 of the semiconductor chip 20. The resin 13 thathas come in contact with the connecting terminal 11 and the electrodeterminal 21 has an interfacial tension (a force resulting from theso-called wet-spreading of a resin) F_(s) at the interfaces thereofwhich is larger than a stress F_(η) generated from the viscosity η ofthe resin so that the resin 13 spreads over the entire surfaces of theconnecting terminal 11 and the electrode terminal 21 to finally form acolumnar resin having boundaries at the end portions of the terminals 11and 21. Accordingly, even when the positions at which the connectingterminal 11 and the electrode terminal 21 face to each other areslightly displaced, the resin 13 can be reliably self-assembled betweenthe terminals under the interfacial tension.

As shown in FIG. 4( b), a stress F_(b) resulting from the growth (ormovement) of the gas bubbles 30 is applied to the columnar resin 13formed by self-growth between the terminals. However, the columnar resin13 can retain the shape thereof under the effect of a reverse stressF_(η) resulting from the viscosity η of the resin 13 so that the resin13 once self-assembled does not disappear. In addition, a surfacetension (or a gas-liquid interfacial tension) acts on the boundarybetween the resin 13 and a gas (e.g., gas bubbles 30) and the surfacetension can also act to retain the shape of the columnar resin 13.

As described above, in the flip chip mounting method of the presentinvention, the growth of the gas bubbles generated from the gas bubblegenerating agent operates to cause the self-assembly of the resinbetween the terminals. To further enhance the operation and effectthereof, it is effective in varying the space (gap) between the circuitboard 10 and the semiconductor chip 20 in the step of heating the resin.

FIGS. 5( a) to 5(c) are views showing an example in which the gapbetween the circuit board 10 and the semiconductor chip 20 is varied inthe step of generating the gas bubbles from the gas bubble generatingagent contained in the resin 13 in the step of heating the resin 13 andcausing the resin 13 to be self-assembled between the terminals by thegrowth of the gas bubbles.

FIG. 5( a) shows the state in which the resin 13 containing theconductive particles 12 and the gas bubble generating agent (not shown)is supplied into the space between the circuit board 10 and thesemiconductor chip 20. At this time, the gap L₁ between the circuitboard 10 and the semiconductor chip 20 is small.

From this state, the resin 13 is heated, while the gap L₂ between thecircuit board 10 and the semiconductor chip 20 is increased, as shown inFIG. 5( b). In the heating step, the gas bubbles 30 generated from thegas bubble generating agent gradually grow and, in the growing process,the gap L₂ between the circuit board 10 and the semiconductor chip 20 isalso gradually increased. This allows a given amount of the resin 13initially supplied into the space between the circuit board 10 and thesemiconductor chip 20 to be efficiently self-assembled between theconnecting terminals 11 and the electrode terminals 21.

FIG. 5( c) shows the state of the resin 13 self-assembled between thefacing terminals at the time at which the gap between the circuit board10 and the semiconductor chip 20 is L₃, in which the resin 13 scarcelyremains between the adjacent terminals. This is because most of theresin 13 which is not self-assembled between the terminals is pushedfrom the space between the circuit board 10 and the semiconductor chip20 toward the outside under the pressure of the grown gas bubbles 30.

Although the description has been given to the example in which the gapbetween the circuit board 10 and the semiconductor chip 20 is increasedin the heating step in FIGS. 5( a) to 5(c), the same operation andeffect can be obtained even when the heating step is performed whileperiodically varying the gap.

A characteristic feature of the flip chip mounting method of the presentinvention is that the gas bubbles are generated from the gas bubblegenerating agent contained in the resin 13 to grow and cause the resin13 to be self-assembled between the terminals. Although the gas bubblegenerating agent used in the example shown in FIGS. 1( a) to 1(d) andFIGS. 2( a) to 2(c) is made of one material, the gas bubble generatingagent may also be made of two or more materials having, e.g., differentboiling temperatures.

FIG. 6 is a view showing an example in which two gas bubble generatingagents having different boiling temperatures are contained in the resin13, which shows the state of the gas bubbles generated from the gasbubble generating agents. Gas bubbles 30 a generated from the gas bubblegenerating agent having a lower boiling temperature are larger than gasbubbles 30 b generated from the gas bubble generating agent having ahigher boiling temperature because the growth of the gas bubbles 30 a istemporally leading that of the gas bubbles 30 b.

The growing gas bubbles 30 b push the resin 13 toward the outsidethereof under the growing pressure thereof and can move a part of theresin 13 into the space between the connecting terminals 11 of thecircuit board 10 and the electrode terminals 21 of the semiconductorchip 20, while there is also the resin 13 left behind. By repeating theoperation of causing the gas bubbles 30 b, which are retarded in growth,to push the resin 13 left behind again toward the outside thereof, theresin 13 can be efficiently moved into the space between the terminals.This allows uniform self-assembly of the resin 13 between the terminals.

The resin 13, the conductive particles 12, and the gas bubble generatingagent used in the flip chip mounting method of the present invention arenot particularly limited, but the following materials can be usedrespectively therefor.

As the resin 13, there can be used a thermosetting resin such as anepoxy resin, a phenol resin, or a silicone resin, or a thermoplasticresin. However, the resin 13 preferably has a viscosity on the orderwhich at least allows the resin 13 to flow in the heating step.

As the conductive particles 12, Cu, Ag, AgCu, or the like can be used.In the present invention, electrical connection between the terminals isintended to be achieved by contact between the individual conductiveparticles so that it is preferable to maximally suppress the growth ofan oxide film on the surface of each of the conductive particles. It isalso possible to implement a state in which only the surfaces of theconductive particles in contact with each other are melted to form metalbonding at the interfaces therebetween. The content of the conductiveparticles 12 in the resin 13 is preferably in the range of, e.g., about0.5% to 30% by volume. The content of the gas bubble generating agent inthe resin 13 is preferably in the range of, e.g., about 0.1% to 20% byweight.

As the gas bubble generating agent, any of the materials shown in FIG. 7can be used. To prevent the conductive particles 12 from melting in theheating step for generating the gas bubbles (a gas such as H₂O, CO₂, orN₂) from the gas bubble generating agent, it is necessary to select thematerial having a boiling temperature lower than the melting temperatureof the conductive particles 12 during the generation of the gas bubbles.

As the gas bubble generating agent, a material which is thermallydecomposed to generate the gas bubbles when the resin is heated may alsobe used. As such a gas bubble generating agent, any of the materialsshown in FIG. 8 can be used. In the case of using, e.g., a compoundcontaining water of crystallization (aluminum hydroxide), the compoundis thermally decomposed when the resin is heated and water vapor isgenerated as gas bubbles.

In the flip chip mounting method described thus far, the semiconductorchip 20 may also be a structure (such as, e.g., a CSP or a BGA) in whicha semiconductor bare chip is mounted on an interposer having a pluralityof electrode terminals (lands). The present invention is applicable notonly to flip chin mounting but also to substrate-to-substrate connectionfor achieving electrical connection between the respective electrodes ofsubstrates each having the plurality of electrode terminals. Thesubstrate-to-substrate connection can be achieved by the followingmethod.

First, a resin containing conductive particles and a gas bubblegenerating agent is supplied into the space between a first substrateand a second substrate each having a plurality of electrodes.Thereafter, the resin is heated to generate gas bubbles from the gasbubble generating agent contained in the resin. In the heating step, theresin is pushed toward the outside of the gas bubbles generated from thegas bubble generating agent by the growth thereof and self-assembledbetween the electrodes of the first substrate and the electrodes of thesecond substrate.

Then, the second substrate is pressed against the first substrate tobring the conductive particles contained in the resin self-assembledbetween the facing electrodes into contact with each other. This allowselectrical connection between the facing electrodes.

Finally, the resin self-assembled between the electrodes is cured to fixthe first substrate to the second substrate, whereby thesubstrate-to-substrate connection is completed.

As the first substrate or the second substrate, there can be used acircuit board, a semiconductor wafer, a semiconductor chip (including abare chip and a mounted chip), or the like.

To the substrate-to-substrate connection also, the various conditions ormethods described in the flip chip mounting method described above areapplicable. For example, to a temperature profile in the step of heatingresin 13, the profile shown in FIG. 3( a) is applicable. To thevariation in the gap between the substrates, the method shown in FIG. 5is applicable.

For the resin 13, the conductive particles 12, and the gas bubblegenerating agent to be used also, the materials described in the flipchip mounting method can also be appropriately selected and used.

Heretofore, the flip chip mounting method and the method for connectingsubstrates according to the present invention have been described. Anapparatus for fabricating a flip chip mounting body by practicing theflip chip mounting method can be implemented with a flip chip mountingapparatus 40 as shown in FIG. 9.

As shown in the block diagram of FIG. 9, the flip chip mountingapparatus 54 comprises holding means 41 for holding the semiconductorchip 20 and the circuit board 10 in mutually facing relation with agiven space provided therebetween, supplying means 42 for supplying theresin 13 containing the conductive particles 12 and the gas bubblegenerating agent into the space between the semiconductor chip 20 andthe circuit board 10, heating means 43 for heating the resin 13, andpressing means 46 for pressing the semiconductor chip 20 against thecircuit board 10. The heating means 43 has first heating means 44 forcontrolling a temperature to a value at which the gas bubbles aregenerated from the gas bubble generating agent contained in the resin 13and second heating means 45 for controlling the temperature to a valueat which the resin 13 is thermally cured.

The holding means 41 has an additional alignment mechanism for aligningthe positions of the electrode terminals of the semiconductor chip 20with respect to those of the connecting terminals of the circuit board10. When the resin is in the form of a paste, the supplying means 42 canuse a dispenser or the like and the heating means 43 can use a heatingstage (hot plate) or a heating box (oven) heated with a hot blast or aninfrared ray.

In the flip chip mounting apparatus 40, the resin 13 heated with thefirst heating means 44 is pushed toward the outside of the gas bubblesgenerated from the gas bubble generating agent by the growth thereof andself-assembled between the connecting terminals 11 of the circuit board10 and the electrode terminals 21 of the semiconductor chip 20. Byfurther pressing the semiconductor chip 20 against the circuit board 10with the pressing means 46, the conductive particles 12 contained in theresin 13 self-assembled between the facing electrodes are brought intocontact with each other, whereby the flip chip mounting body iscompleted.

A method which simultaneously performs the provision of electricalconnection between the facing terminals of a semiconductor chip and acircuit board and the fixation of the semiconductor chip to the circuitboard using a resin containing a solder powder (conductive particles) isdisclosed in each of Patent Document 5 (Japanese Laid-Open PatentPublication No. 2002-26070) and Patent Document 6 (Japanese Laid-OpenPatent Publication No. HEI 11-186334). In the method disclosed in eachof the documents, the respective portions of the facing terminals of thesemiconductor chip and the circuit board which are in contact with eachother are soldered by melting the solder powder contained in the resinand then the semiconductor chip is encapsulated in and fixed to thecircuit board by curing the resin. Although the method disclosed in eachof the documents apparently seems to be a similar technique to thepresent invention, the method solders the terminals by a so-calledreflow process. Accordingly, the solder powder is dispersed in the resineven after resin encapsulation and, unlike in the present invention, itis not intended to achieve electrical connection between the terminalsby causing the resin containing the conductive particles to beself-assembled between the facing terminals and then bringing theconductive particles contained in the resin into contact with eachother. Therefore, the method disclosed in each of the documents is atechnique essentially different from the present invention.

On the other hand, a method which simultaneously performs the provisionof electrical connection between the facing terminals of a semiconductorchip and a circuit board and the fixation of the semiconductor chip tothe circuit board, each using a resin containing conductive particles(low-melting-point metal filler), is described in each of PatentDocument 7 (Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-260131) andNon-Patent Document 1 (Masahiro Yasuda et al., “Self-Organized JoiningAssembly Process by Electrically Conductive Adhesive Using Low MeltingPoint Filler” 10th Symposium on “Microjoining and Assembly Technology inElectronics, pp. 183 to 188, 2004). Each of the documents discloses atechnique in which conductive particles selectively form self-organizedconnectors between terminals by using a resin having anoxidizing/reducing ability based on the aggregation and wetting of themolten metal filler contained in the resin.

However, Patent Document 7 and Non-Patent Document 1 do not go beyondindicating the probability of a process which selectively (in aself-assembled manner) joins the facing terminals and merely causesaggregation (self-assembly) by relying only on the wettability of themolten conductive particles. As a result, it is difficult to uniformlyform the connectors between the terminals.

The present invention has been achieved based on the recognition that,since the resin containing the conductive particles does not function asthe “sea” in which the conductive particles can freely move, the bondingprocess of the conductive particles does not uniformly proceed and,consequently, uniform connectors cannot be formed between the terminals.Therefore, by applying the method according to the present invention, itis possible to perform high-yield flip chip mounting of a semiconductorchip having a large number of electrode terminals so that a usefulmethod applicable to a mass production process is provided.

Although the present invention has thus been described using thepreferred embodiments thereof, such a description is not a restrictivematter and various modifications can be naturally made.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

In accordance with the present invention, it is possible to provide aflip chip mounting method which is applicable to the flip chip mountingof a next-generation LSI and high in productivity and reliability aswell as a method for connecting substrates.

1-17. (canceled)
 18. A flip chip mounting apparatus for flip chipmounting a semiconductor chip on a circuit board, the flip chip mountingapparatus comprising: holding means for holding the semiconductor chipand the circuit board in mutually facing relation with a given spaceprovided therebetween; supplying means for supplying a resin containingconductive particles and a gas bubble generating agent into the spacebetween the semiconductor chip and the circuit board; heating means forheating the resin, and pressing means for pressing the semiconductorchip against the circuit board, wherein the heating means has firstheating means for controlling a temperature to a value at which gasbubbles are from the gas bubble generating agent contained in the resinand second heating means for controlling the temperature to a value atwhich the resin is thermally cured.
 19. The flip chip mounting apparatusaccording to claim 18, wherein the resin heated with the first heatingmeans is pushed toward the outside of the gas bubbles generated from thegas bubble generating agent by growth of the gas bubbles andself-assembled between connecting terminals of the circuit board andelectrode terminals of the semiconductor chip, the semiconductor chip ispressed against the circuit board with the pressing means to bring theconductive particles contained in the resin self-assembled between theterminals into contact with each other and provide electrical connectionbetween the terminals, and the resin is heated with the second heatingmeans to fix the semiconductor chip to the circuit board in a state inwhich the conductive particles contained in the resin are in contactwith each other.